• Star chart of the sky over Babylon on 5 December 7 BC, evening, with Jupiter and Saturn about a degree apart in Pisces, marked with a star.
  • Star chart of the sky over Babylon for 5 BC, before dawn, with a star marking the region of Capricornus where Han astronomers recorded a new light in Qianniu.
  • Star chart of the sky over Babylon on the evening of 17 June 2 BC, with Jupiter and Venus drawn close together low in the west, marked with a star.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the gold star ornament over Jupiter and Saturn, with Pegasus lines and stars around it.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the night line reading Babylon, Mesopotamia, December 5, 7 BC, Evening, with its latitude and longitude.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the night line, the coordinates and the verse, Matthew 2:2.
  • Soft proof of the 7 BC chart, 12 by 16 inches, simulating how the colours reproduce on paper. A digital simulation, not a photograph of a printed frame.
  • Star chart of the sky over Babylon on 5 December 7 BC, evening, with Jupiter and Saturn about a degree apart in Pisces, marked with a star. One theory's sky.
  • Star chart of the sky over Babylon for 5 BC, before dawn, with a dashed region in Capricornus marking where Han astronomers recorded a new light in Qianniu. One theory's sky.
  • Star chart of the sky over Babylon on the evening of 17 June 2 BC, with Jupiter and Venus drawn close together low in the west, marked with a star. One theory's sky.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the gold star ornament over Jupiter and Saturn, with Pegasus lines and stars around it.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the night line reading Babylon, Mesopotamia, December 5, 7 BC, Evening, with its latitude and longitude.
  • Close detail of the 7 BC chart at print resolution: the coordinates and the printed line One theory's sky, not a claim that this was the night.
  • Soft proof of the 7 BC chart, 12 by 16 inches, simulating how the colours reproduce on paper. A digital simulation, not a photograph of a printed frame.
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The Star of Bethlehem

The Star of Bethlehem

$139.00 USD
$139.00 USD
Sale Sold out
Free US shipping.

About these skies

No one knows which night the Magi saw. Each print shows one of three skies that historians and astronomers have proposed: 7 BC, when Jupiter and Saturn met three times (this print shows 5 December); 5 BC, when Han astronomers recorded a new light in the Qianniu region (the record gives a region, not an exact position, so the light is marked within it); and 2 BC, when Jupiter and Venus came within a twentieth of a moon of each other on 17 June. All three skies are drawn as seen from Babylon, with dates in the Julian calendar.

Night
Format

Three fixed star charts of the sky over Babylon, each drawn for one of the three nights people have proposed for the Star of Bethlehem. These are fixed prints, not personalised: nothing is added or changed for you, and you choose the night you want to hang.

One theory's sky, not a claim that this was the night. Each chart shows where the planets and stars stood on one proposed date, computed from NASA's planetary tables and a star catalogue moved back along its measured drift. Dates are Julian.

  • 7 BC: Jupiter and Saturn in Pisces, the third of their three meetings that year (5 December).
  • 5 BC: a new light recorded by Han astronomers in Qianniu, in what we call Capricornus. The record gives a region, not an exact position, so the plate marks the region.
  • 2 BC: 17 June, Jupiter and Venus under a twentieth of a moon apart.

All three skies are drawn as seen from Babylon. Matthew records the star "in the east", while the 2 BC pair stood low in the west; the article sets out where each night fits and where it falls short.

Read the article: What was the Star of Bethlehem?

Choose

  • 12 x 16 in framed print, black frame: US$99
  • 18 x 24 in framed canvas, black frame: US$139

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Every piece is made to order. Shipping is free to the United States. We email you tracking the moment it ships. Once it ships it usually arrives in 3 to 4 business days in the US. These are typical times, not guarantees.

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You have 30 days from delivery to flag a problem. If your order turns up misprinted, defective, damaged in transit, or different from what you ordered (wrong item, size, or design on our end), we replace it or refund you. What we cannot cover is a change of mind or a size you ordered by mistake, since every piece is printed to order just for you. We also do not run direct swaps, so for a different size or colour, just place a new order.
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Made to order

Nothing sits in a warehouse. Every Called & Sent piece is printed only after you order it, which means less waste and every design available in the colours and sizes you actually want. It is a slightly longer wait than mass produced stock, and worth it, because your gear is made for you rather than pulled off a shelf.